Go Quest: Should You Be Reading ‘Unsounded’? [Fantasy Week]

With Should I Be Reading… ?, ComicsAlliance hopes to offer you a guide to some of the best original ongoing comics being published today. This week, we’re focusing on fantasy comics as part of a week of articles looking at the very best in the genre.

A young girl sets off on a mission to earn her father's respect in Unsounded. But her father is the King of Thieves, the girl herself has got a tail, and her guardian is more than he seems.

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

Unsounded is an incredibly long running fantasy webcomic following Sette Frummagem, a sneaky young girl who is heir to a criminal empire, and her magical bodyguard Duane Adelier. Sette is sent west to collect on a debt, and along the way she and Duane encounter man-eating tree-monsters, slavers (the worst kind of monsters), and Duane’s desire to eat flesh. Oh, did I forget to mention that Duane is undead?

WHO’S IT BY?

Unsounded is written and drawn by Ashley Cope, a freelance artist and graphic designer from Florida. Her other works include the short comics ChibiZombies and And The Rat Came In On The Back Of The Plague.

WHAT MAKES IT SPECIAL?

Sette and Duane are a lovely odd couple. Sette is loud and brash in that way only a child can be, with some greed and duplicity thrown in for good measure. Duane is quiet, dark, brooding. He's patient with Sette, like a parent, but one who has mostly stopped listening to their child's bizarre stories. He's got a sense of honor and justice that are sometimes at odds with Sette's family's thieving ways. Their bickering is delightful.

The art is reminiscent of anime, but changes style when magic is around. It can get quite fantastical then, almost painterly, in contrast with the crisp lines and sometimes quite simple backgrounds found in the rest of the comic. Cope is fantastic at drawing action scenes, making them easier to follow visually than some superhero comics.

Unsounded is funny and magical, but not afraid to get dark --- and it can get quite dark.

WHO SHOULD READ IT?

Wannabe rogues. Anyone with a chaotic-good alignment. Unsounded is definitely not for children, despite the young protagonist.

WHERE CAN I READ IT?

You can read Unsounded on its website, where it updates three days a week. Chapters 1-6 are also available in print in two volumes, which you can buy from the Unsounded shop.